


Onwards to our Glorious Deaths

by lolcano



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Everything Changed When The Fire Nation Attacked, Fire Nation (Avatar), Gen, Soldiers, band of brother esque or something, the horrors of war and whatnot, the northern air temple, there is major character death but they are just OCs so maybe it's not the same?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:40:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24649618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lolcano/pseuds/lolcano
Summary: The adventures of a Fire Nation tank crew.Set during Season 1 Episode 17 The Northern Air Temple.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6





	1. In the Mountains

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this story a loooong time ago. Why? Who knows! I guess I have always been fascinated by the "enemies" in a show, especially when they are generally portrayed as faceless mooks, like your generic Fire Nation soldiers. What is their life like, behind the scenes? With this in mind I wrote the story, even though I know nothing about tanks or how an army actually works. 
> 
> So would a tank crew REALLY need five people to operate? What would each person even do? I am afraid I am at a loss to answer. So I ask you, dear reader, to please suspend your disbelief on this part, and enjoy the story nonetheless!

Minh stared out to where the craggy ledge of their campsite fell away into a sea of clouds. The mountains towered all around him, swooping out of the sky like vast ocean waves, up and up until their white tops faded away and earth and sky was one.

He heaved a sigh.

The boy sat there alone for a long time, watching the first rays of sunlight pierce the cloudy covering beneath him. So absorbed was he in his own thoughts that he did not notice the man who was presently standing behind him. The man stood silently at the edge of the cliff, following the boy's gaze across the open sky. He watched in silence, the boy wrapped in such a solemn demeanour that he was prevented from interrupting. But the slowly rising sun hastened him on his business and he sat down next to the boy.

He handed him a ragged ball of rice, wrapped neatly within a large green leaf.

"Here, eat." he said. The man took a small bite of his own as an example and the tiny bundle was gone within two bites.

Minh took the ball and unwrapped the covering leaf slowly, looking out at the gradually lightening sky.

"Thank you Jiang."

The man, Jiang, sat up straight and looked at the rising sun.

"It's almost dawn." he told the boy, "We'll be going soon."

"I know." Minh replied, eating his small rice ball one grain at a time to make it last longer.

They waited as the sun began to peek out from behind the mountain tops, its golden light bathing everything in a warm yellow glow. Minh could feel its warmth seeping into the surrounding countryside and slowly returning the sleeping mountain to life. Animals were beginning to peek out and crawl around the ragged pathway the men were sitting on. Not far away was a large metal machine, looking at odds with the natural environment. Its vicious looking spiked wheels glinted in the slowly growing sunlight. Every once in a while a braver sort of creature would come up to it and sniff it. But, as if they could smell the scent of blood and death on its carriage, they would scurry off quickly in fear. Even the animals knew it was dangerous.

It was dangerous, but still a man was sleeping peacefully next to its large spiked belt wheels. Another man tinkered quietly with its engines, fearlessly reaching into its inner parts as if operating on it. These humans, at least, did not fear the machine.

And for now, there was nothing to fear. The great army of the Fire Nation, that terrible foe so feared by the others, was scattered across the pathway in small campsites which had still barely awakened. Everything was hushed, as if the whole world was holding its breath in expectation for a new, exciting day. The hush covered everything.

Then Minh spoke again, his voice a reverent whisper.

"You know... This place. It kinda reminds me of home. All the mountains."

Jiang turned to look at him.

"I guess it would. You're from the Jozun region aren't you?"

"Yeah."

Jiang looked at the rising mountaintops that soared above the clouds with a kind of awe. The darkness of night had fallen away to reveal a vibrant, living rock covered in plants and colours. It was so large and unbearably empty of human habitation, so utterly different from the busy city of Jiang's childhood. Here, they were so alone. And it was beautiful.

"If this is what your home looks like," Jiang finally replied, "then you’re lucky. I can’t imagine living in a more beautiful place."

But Minh only shrugged. "I guess."

Jiang raised an eyebrow at the boy's uncertainty.

Minh sighed. "I mean yes. I mean, I don't know. I always thought they were boring. Home was boring. I wanted to see the world."

He turned away from the empty blue sky and rested his head on his knees. "But now... I don't know what I'd give to see them again."

Jiang looked at him silently. He thought of his own home, of his four younger siblings he had abandoned. The war had taken so many things from them both.

But then he smiled, throwing his hand around Minh’s shoulders and pulling him close.

"Aw, come on Minh! You'll get back to your hicky little peasant village again eventually!"

The boy tried to smile. He didn’t like being called a peasant, but he knew that the man was trying to cheer him up.

"But until then, adventure awaits!" Jiang continued, waving his hand to indicate the vast expanse, "Just think, today we're going to the Northern Air Temple! It's an amazing place, I know, I’ve been there.”

Minh laughed and pulled himself away from the older boys grip. "Maybe you can tell me one of your stories about it sometime then."

But before Jiang could launch himself into a long lengthy tale, they were interrupted by the sudden appearance of a third member. The small skinny boy who had been operating on the tank had grown bored of playing doctor, and seeing the two laughing smiling on the ledge had come to investigate.

He sat down next to them, bravely pulling himself to the tip of the ledge until his legs were dangling over the empty air. He kicked them back and forth so much that the others feared for his safety.

The boy leaned back into a comfortable sprawl. "So. What's up?" he asked.

Jiang shrugged. "Just admiring the scenery," he said, and the boy, Jun, nodded enthusiastically.

"It's amazing!" he agreed, "I've never seen anything like it. It's so peaceful."

He frowned.

"And boring." he added in an undertone.

They had been slowly travelling across the mountains for days, their small convey stretched into a long flimsy string due to the narrow passageways. So far it had been completely uneventful.

"Well, I'm glad." said Jiang. "This is a peaceful mission, after all. We're just going to the temple, picking up some weapons, then leaving."

Jiang, who had seen action before, was happy enough to leave it at that. But the two boys, eager and untested, desperately, although secretly, desired for something to add excitement to their dreary march. Deep in their hearts they hoped for an enemy ambush, or some kind of secret raid in which they could test their courage and earn their manhood. Anything would be more exciting than this.

"If it's a peaceful mission then why do they need so many tank units anyway? I'm sick and tired of moving around for nothing." Jun whined.

Jiang shrugged. He was the leader of the crew, but his rank was not high enough that they would share such information with him. There was nothing to say. They all stared at the rising sun in a peaceful silence. The signal to leave would be coming soon enough, but for now they had the time to themselves.

It seemed like Minh and Jiang were perfectly content to waste the rest of this time in silent meditation, and so Jun courageously tried to join them.

He tried to sit still for a few moments.

Then he twitched. He tapped his foot impatiently. Jun couldn't stand doing nothing.

"I'm bored." he announced. He got up and paced anxiously back and forth. Back and forth. How long were they going to be staying here?

Suddenly a flare went off and slowly a wave of activity animated the sleepy soldiers on the cliffside. Jun whooped and started gathering everything together and shoving them away into packs.

Jiang pulled himself up from the mountaintop.

“Right.” He commanded, “Let’s get moving. Somebody wake up Takashi.”

The fire-bender was snoring peacefully underneath the shadow of their tank, his long hair loose from his usual pony tail and half-covering his face.

Jun threw the blankets he had been carrying to the side and ran up to the man.

"Takashi! Wake up! We gotta go now!" he yelled.

But with an angry growl, the sleeping man turned over pointedly and dragged his blanket over his head. Jun stared at him in disappointment for a second, then tried again.

"Come ooooon Takashi!" complained Jun, shaking Takashi vigorously, "You're gunna make us late again!"

"arrrrrgghhppph shush." came a muffled shout from beneath the blanket. The blanket twitched, then stopped moving, for all intents and purposes dead to the world.

But Jun was not fooled by the possum act and applied himself energetically to shaking it until finally a sleepy looking man tumbled out.

"Argh! Why do who always do that!" the man groaned, "Can't you just let me sleep for once?" There were few things that Takashi truly cared about, and sleep was one of them.

But Jiang, who had risen from the cliff's ledge to watch the battle with amusement, only laughed. "Takashi, if we just let you sleep you would never wake up! And who’s going to shoot fire at the enemies if you are not awake?"

Takashi ignored him and wiped the sleep from his eyes. His clothes were rumpled and dirty and he slumped dejectedly.

"When are we going?" he said, giving in to the inevitable.

Minh shaded his eyes and looked toward the sky. The sun was no longer a shimmering crescent but a fearsome glowing orb in the sky.

"Soon. Maybe about ten minutes." he guessed.

"Then you don't have to wake me up until ten more minutes." Takashi mumbled, his face disappearing beneath the blanket once more.

Sleep was rare enough to find on voyages, and Takashi was determined to use every precious minute that he could. A soldier's life had scarce other pleasures, he had learned the hard way.

But before he could close his eyes, Jun swiped the man's blanket and threw it away.

"Nuh-uh. Up and at em buddy! I thought fire-benders rose with the sun!" He tossed a red suit of armour at Takashi which hit him hard in the shoulder

"Come on. Come on! Get dressed and let's go." He hurried off to prepare the tank for their departure. Jun couldn't bear waiting any longer.

Grumbling, Takashi pulled on his armour and got up, rubbing his shoulder ruefully where the armour had hit him.

Jun was already wiggling his way into the small opening of their tank. Lying on his belly, he gripped the control levers and gave it a pull. The tank lurched forward a few inches.

"Everything seems to be working properly!" he announced, grinding the machine to a halt again. "We are ready and rip-roaring for action!"

"Good." said Jiang as he clambered into the turret with Minh. "Everyone get inside and wait for the signal."

The sun was high now. They should be leaving any minute. The others complied, but Takashi, who was still not entirely awake, did not budge from his comfortable position on the ground.

"Now? The signal to leave could take forever." he pointed out, still sitting sleepily by a large rock, "Why should we have to be crammed into this stuffy machine to wait?"

The others shrugged and so he remained outside. He looked up the narrow path that wound around the mountain ahead of them. Other tank units were spread out on the road ahead, and from Takashi's limited viewpoint he could see thousands of tiny figures sprawled across the pathway preparing to leave. Everyone was bustling with activity.

Suddenly a blaze of fire shot of in the distance.

The first signal. They were leaving in 10 minutes. Jiang yelled at Takashi to get in the tank and the man scrambled to get into the already crowded turret. His body was halfway inside when the second flare went off. Jun gave the lever an enthusiastic heave. The tank lurched forward.

Takashi tumbled straight into Minh. The bodies in the turret were a crumpled heap, but at least everyone was in.

"And we're off!" Jun cried happily, navigating the tank expertly across the treacherous rocky ledge.

"Onwards to death and glory!" he whooped, grinning widely. He sped up until he was a few lengths away from the unit ahead where he was forced to slow down. Above, a string of tanks that stretched out along the pathway as far as the eyes could see.

Inching ahead slowly, like a line of ants, the fire nation army advanced, their tanks crawling single file up the thin winding passage way.

A steady, slowly advancing chain of destruction.


	2. Stories

Minh shifted his body awkwardly, trying to find a more comfortable position in the cramped corridors. He stretched out his feet, hitting Jiang's waist by mistake.

"Watch it." Jiang snapped. They had been travelling for hours up the steep craggy cliffs and everyone was tired and uncomfortable.

"Sorry Jiang." Minh said mildly, quickly pulling his feet up to his chest.

Jiang let out a long sigh. "I know, I know. It's no big deal. You can move, it's okay." He tried to move his body to make room, but ended up knocking into Takashi, who was resting quietly in the corner of the room. The man accepted his suddenly reduced resting place with a stoic courage. Despite being trapped in the corner, his eyes remained closed as he somehow managed to rest even as the tank bumped and growled its way along. His uncommon capacity for relaxation gave the others an undeniable sense of envy. But finally even he could not take being crammed in any further and so gently he pushed the others bodies away from him.

"Just relax," he commented as everyone rearranged themselves awkwardly, "We'll get there eventually."

But no one believed his well-worn platitude. They had been driving too long for that.

Jun laughed tiredly, his eyes strained from staring at the narrow pathway.

"Eventually? We've been doing this for hours."

"Concentrate on the driving Jun." commanded Jiang, anxious to keep the peace.

But Jun couldn't bear the silence. "But there's nothing to do!" he cried, "It's all the same! Same view, same rocks, same stupid cliff. This is so stupid. They never should have brought us through these stupid mountains."

Everyone was silent.

Minh looked up wearily. A slice of sky could be seen in the turret viewing window. White and grey flashed by in a perpetual cycle.

White and gray, white and grey. They were bored of it. Jun was tapping his foot impatiently while Minh only stared unseeingly at the ceiling. Takashi snored gently in the corner. Jiang had his head buried wearily in his hands. Slowly, Jiang breathed in deeply. Finally he let loose a long sigh. Then when he raised his head again he was smiling.

"Alright then!" he said cheerfully, clapping his hands together, "We need entertainment. Want to hear a story? Did I tell you about the time Takashi and I was at that earth kingdom village and we found that amazing curry restaurant?"

"Yep." said Takashi, opening an eye.

Jiang frowned. "Well of course _you’ve_ heard it!"

"No, he's right." said Minh, his head buried in his knees, "You already told us that one."

Jiang looked disappointed. "Well, did I tell you what happened before that? When we ran into a building on the way in?"

Minh was pretty sure he had, but for the sake of having something to do he replied, "No, I don't think so."

Jiang grinned. "Well!" he said, sweeping his arm dramatically through the air, "Let me tell you, that is a good story!"

He leaned in as if sharing an extraordinary secret. "Just picture it," he said, his voice low and dramatic, "We had just entered the city, avoiding 20 earth benders who were all out for our blood. Rocks and stones were raining down like cats and dogs. One landed just an inch from us, I felt a woosh in my ear, and suddenly there was a great big rock beside us! Woo! It was close.”

“What's worse is that somehow we got separated from the rest of our group, which is about the worst thing that can happen. We were all alone, at the mercy of the enemy! We zigged and zagged throughout the city, knowing that we couldn't stop moving, because otherwise we'd be a sitting turtle-duck. So we're going full-steam ahead, and what do we see? Some great big house right in front of us!"

He swept his arms up into the air, nearly hitting Takashi in the face.

"It was huge, let me tell you! It must have been some rich guy's house, because it was all fancy and far away from all the others. Anyway, we were charging full steam ahead at this great big honking house. So I yelled at Dong-Yu (Dong-Yu was our driver before you Jun) to stop the tank. But of course, it was too late! We rammed right into the kitchen! Flour was everywhere! We were halfway through before good old Bessie (that’s what we called our tank) came to a stop. Then of course, when we tried to reverse, it wouldn't move at all! So we all got out. I told everyone to try we were going to push the tank. But Dong-Yu, instead of walking to the tank, he walked right into the kitchen. He opened up the cupboards, saying he was liberating all its inhabitants in the name of the Fire Lord!

Jiang laughed loudly. He nudged Takashi with his elbow and the man smiled slightly at the shared memory.

But Minh interrupted their moment of comradeship, anxious to hear what happened next. "Well? Then what?"

Jiang smiled.

"Next is the best part! It really must have been a rich man's house," he continued, "because it was full of the most delicious food! So we all took the time to stuff ourselves, figuring it was the compensation we deserved for what that house had done to us. We stayed there for the rest of the battle, since we'd be useless out there by ourselves and at least it was safe here. But eventually we decided we had to get moving. We tried to push Bessie out. But no matter how much we tried, old Bessie wouldn't budge. So we pile back into the tank and put the pedal to the metal. And to our surprise, she took right off and rolled clean through the building! There was hardly a scratch on her, but the house was completely destroyed!"

He folded his hands over his chest triumphantly and smiled. "Then we went back to our camp. Everyone was in low spirits, since we’d suffered heavy losses in the battle. But while they were out there getting killed we'd spent the whole time in a house stuffing our faces! Ha! And that's the story!"

Takashi applauded dutifully.

Minh’s eyes shone with awe. He loved Jiang's stories. They were full of adventure, gallantry and excitement, everything that Minh had dreamed about when he signed up for the army. Everything that his life was not. He leaned back against the cold steel railings of the rumbling machine and stared silently into the distance, dreaming of the time he too would have his own great adventures, riding their metal tank to victory and glory. Suddenly, he thought of something.

"So what happened to Bessie?" he asked Jiang, "And why doesn't our tank have a name?"

"Oh. She got destroyed a few days later. Crushed by earth-benders." He waved his hand flippantly. "I don't bother naming them anymore."

“Oh..” said Minh.

Jiang clapped his hands together and grinned. "Anyway! What did you think of the story Jun?"

"Hm?" said Jun.

"My story! The one I told just for you!" cried Jiang.

"Um." Jun replied absent-mindedly, "The road’s a bit..., I mean it’s pretty thin right now. So I wasn’t really paying attention."

The mountain path that had been for the most part clear and grown narrow and rocky. Areas had crumpled away, leaving gaping holes in the pathway, which Jun managed to navigate masterfully.

Jiang groaned. "You tell me this after I poured my heart and soul into that beautiful story just for you!" He leaned back exasperatedly. A steel bar drove uncomfortably into his head so he leaned forward again.

"Fine then!" he announced, "As your punishment, you will have to tell us a story Jun."

Jun grimaced as he looked at the narrow path in front of him. "I’d be happy to,” he said, “Literally any other time.” The tank wobbled a bit to demonstrate the seriousness of the situation.

Jiang shook his head disappointedly but didn't push it any farther.

He turned towards Minh. "Alright then Minh. We’re counting on you!"

Minh was still dreaming about how he was going to single-handedly bring victory to the Fire Nation army when he noticed every one staring at him expectantly. He stood up in shock, nearly hitting his head against the ceiling. "Me?" he asked.

"Do you see any other Minh’s around here? Tell us a story!"

He looked at the ground and frowned. "I don't know any. Nothing exciting has happened to me." he said quickly, "I haven't been to any battles like you or Takashi. I've never even attacked a proper city. I've only guarded a few stupid outposts and marched around doing nothing."

"Then tell us a story from before you joined the army," suggested Takashi.

"That's even more boring!" Minh protested. Was he supposed to tell a story about rice? Rice didn't even do anything!

"Come on Minh! Don't be such a spoil-sport," encouraged Jiang, "Let's hear a story! It'll be great!"

Minh looked down, his mind going blank as he tried to think of a story worth telling. Outside the tall mountains flashed by, reminding him of his far-away home in the Jozun Mountains.

"Um, well there was this one time..." he began quietly. The others, except Jun who was concentrating, leaned in closer.

"Um well, so I live on a farm on a mountain right? It's sort of like here except not as steep and a lot greener. But we lived near the bottom where we had our rice terraces. I would always look up at the top of the mountain and wonder what was up there. I thought that it must be something really amazing. So one day, without telling my parents or my brother, I decided to climb up and see. It took the entire day and when I got back my parents were really mad."

He fell silent, trying to think of what to say next. The others waited impatiently.

"Well?" asked Jiang. "What was on the top of the mountain?"

Minh snapped back to focus. "Hm? Oh yeah. There was nothing on the mountain. Just rocks. The view was nice though."

Jiang furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "That's it?"

Takashi laughed. "I like that story." He smiled contently and leaned back with his eyes closed. "It's a good story."

But Minh shook his head. "No no, it's not done! I'm just not good at telling stories... Anyway, the mountain top was nothing special. But when I was going back down, I saw this great tree. I wasn't expecting to find a tree that high up. There are only small ones because there's not much dirt. But this one was huge. It was tall and majestic with twisted scraggly branches. And I saw... Well nevermind. From then on, whenever I got really tired or wanted to get away from everything, I would go sit underneath it. Um...yeah... "

There was a pause and Minh realized he had trapped himself. He should have told a different story. He couldn't say what happened next. It was embarrassing. They’d just tease him.

So he decided to just end it. "I guess that's it." the boy finished lamely. The others stared at him.

"Hmmm..." Jiang approved, "Very interesting story Minh."

"It was terrible." the boy mumbled. He curled into a miserable ball. He was never good at anything. Every time he tried to do something great or wonderful it never turned out how he had dreamed in his mind.

"No it’s not!" protested Jiang.

"It was bad." Snapped Minh, his face turning red. "I know. I'm not good at telling stories like you. You don't have to pretend you liked it."

Jiang was about to say something, but he sighed and slumped down silently.

"Well I thought it was nice." said Takashi.

But after this Minh turned his head away again, clearly not wanting to speak any more. He was remembering. Remembering what he couldn’t tell his friends for fear of mockery, of how beneath that tree he had found the most beautiful girl in the village. How they had spoken together, silly little conversations, but ones that meant so much to him.

And then, more recently, how they had met together on that final day, the day he had enlisted, and how her face had grown so solemn.

The others drifted away into their own separate silences, remembering perhaps their own stories of times gone by. Times with loved ones. Times in familiar places. Times that had now been left far behind, just like their homes.

They didn't speak again, instead watching the grey and white mountains roll away behind them. The ever-present sound of the rumbling tank grew in the silence until it was all that they could hear, an inescapable growl in the corner of their ears. Slowly, the sky darkened above them.

The sun was low in the sky when they finally reached a large clearing. Ahead of them, tanks were pulling into a grid formation and preparing to halt for the night. They set up camp wearily and ate their meagre supper.

Quietly, they lay down and fell asleep. Tomorrow would be another long journey.


	3. Attack on the Northern Air Temple

It was early afternoon when the flare rose up into the sky, the familiar signal to clear out. But instead of the usual blazing red, it was a dark burning purple.

Minh stared at it in confusion. It couldn't be. It was supposed to be a peaceful mission, wasn’t it? There wasn’t supposed to be any fighting.

Jun was pacing back and forth in front of their tank, as he had been doing for the last few hours. Suddenly, he too noticed the flare. He craned his neck upwards and squinted at the bright signal. He turned to Minh.

"Purple? But isn't that...?"

Minh nodded. Jun stared at him uncertainly; his eye's wide and scared. Then slowly a wide grin split his face and he laughed hysterically.

"Finally! Something to do!" He ran off to prepare the tank for battle.

Minh watched him go. His stomach was churning uneasily and he didn't know why. This was the moment he had been waiting for his whole life. They were going into battle. This was the moment to prove his manhood, bring honour to his family and glory to the entire Fire Nation.

Then what was this strange feeling in his stomach?

He tried to comfort himself with the familiar stories that he had dreamed up in his head on his many long weary journeys. It would be easy. He would forge forward against impossible odds, the enemies all around but bravely vanquishing them until victory was theirs. He had it all planned out. This hope was what had sustained him through long marches, cramped quarters, meagre rations and miserable weather.

But now that all he had hoped for was within his grasp, he felt strangely empty. Would it really be like he had expected? Or would it be like his story: he would climb to the top of the mountain only to find nothing. That would just be his luck.

Minh stood alone on the snowy plain, leaning against the small boulder he had made his campsite. Everyone else was gone.

Jiang had run off as soon as he saw the flare. It was his duty as crew leader to meet with the commanders and receive their orders. Takashi had already been gone for hours, spending the day with some of his fire-bender friends as he usually did.

They had come by early in the morning. Takashi had invited Jiang too, but the commander decided to stay to keep the two younger members company. They appreciated it. It had already been a long and dull day as they waited at the base of the mountain for the admiral in charge to go receive the weapons. Jun had wanted to go out and talk to some of the other soldiers. But Jiang asked him to stay and play Pai Sho with him instead.

Now Minh looked down at the tiles lying forgotten on the ground. The small worn tiles were roughly hewn from pebbles with small symbols that could barely be made out from beneath the dirt. He scooped them up and put them in his pocket for safekeeping. After they had grown bored of playing, the tiles had lain forgotten on the ground as Jiang had told them about the strange man who lived in the northern air temple who had invented many important things that had revolutionized the industry of the Fire Nation.

"We go every year to see what new things he has made. The man's a genius. But rumours say," Jiang could not help but add dramatically, “He’s completely mad! He even singed his own eyebrows out trying to come up with some crazy weapon!”

Jun had been lying on the ground, scribbling in the dirt while he listened to Jiang's story. He rolled over and pointed his stick skeptically at Jiang.

"If he's working for us, why the giant tank battalion? It's such a pain to drive up these stupid mountains." he said, lying on his back and pointlessly waving his stick around the air.

Jiang shrugged. "So he won't think twice about double-crossing us, I suppose. He _is_ from the Earth Kingdom after all.”

And now, supposedly, he had double-crossed them. What else can you expect from the Earth Kingdom? Still, it wasn’t as if he had ever done anything to Minh. He was supposed to be a genius. But now they were going to attack him, and even kill him. For what?

It didn’t matter. He was the enemy.

Minh steeled himself to show no mercy. He had to bring reason to these people. He didn't understand why he was so nervous. He finally had the chance to bring honour to his family. If _she_ saw him right now she would laugh and call him a coward. She wouldn't look twice at him.

He had to fight.

Before long Jiang and Takashi came back, looking grim and serious.

As they approached, Jun popped his head out of the tank.

"Alright! What's the plan of attack, oh brave and illustrious leader?" he grinned.

Still serious, Jiang gestured for them to gather around him. He relayed their orders.

"The infantry troops are already being deployed." he began. "The tanks will follow soon after in waves. We're in the first, so we'll leave at the first signal. Our mission is to raze the temple."

"We've been ordered to show no mercy." Takashi said, half-yawning as he slid himself into the tank.

Minh looked down at the ground, tightening his hands into hard determined fists. Jun cheered.

"Alright!" he whooped, a wide manic grin still on his face. It hadn't left since he had seen the flare. He ducked back into the tank, chattering happily as he went.

"I can't believe we're finally going to do something! Haha, this is so exciting!" He laughed. It was meant to be brave and easy-going, but it ran a little high and rattled with nerves.

Jiang clambered easily into their machine, looking at ease and unworried, as if he had done this a million times.

"Don't worry. It shouldn't be too bad. It's only a group of refugees. They won't show much resistance."

"I'm not worried!" snapped Jun. Nobody said anything.

They all sat in the tank, each man steeling himself for battle. Jun twirled the control stick anxiously.

Finally the signal came.

Jun jerked the controls and they rumbled off. Too fast. They were heading towards the mountains at such a high speed that Jiang had to order for him to slow down to avoid passing the others.

Taking deep breaths, Jun eased the tank back into line. Ahead of them, a steep mountain wall blocked their path, growing taller and taller as they rapidly approached.

"Here we go!" shouted Jun. A pressed button caused a large grappling hook to go flying into the air. It soared through the clouds until with a jerk it found purchase on ledge above.

And then suddenly they were going up.


	4. Onwards and Upwards

Minh’s hands gripped the steel bar tightly and he breathed shallowly in and out. Heights had never really affected him. But this was a completely other story!

Their tank was going straight up the mountain, suspended precariously from a single thick chain of steel. It dangled in the air like some great spider-goat with nothing below it but empty air. If they fell now there’d be nothing to stop them. Nothing but a far away ground of cold unyielding rocks.

The spiked wheels ground into the rocky cliff, propelling them up vertical face with blatant disregard to the laws of gravity. It moved steadily upwards, the tank growling and grumbling with the strain. Every time the engine spluttered and leap, Minh’s heart would splutter right along with it. He was afraid that it would fail beneath their weight and they'd be thrown downwards to an untimely demise.

Fall away into that empty blue sky that surrounded them.

He could nearly touch it. If he turned, he could see what had previously been the top for their entirety of their voyage. And yet now it was the side and beyond its steel covering was the blue empty sky as far as the eye could see.

It covered him on all sides except where below rocky ground rumbled by. Except it wasn't ground, he had to remind himself. It was a cliff. He felt dizzy, like something deep inside his abdomen was falling away, even though he could feel the cold solid metal of the tank digging into his back. It felt wrong. The rocky surface below him should by all rights be the ground, but yet his body was screaming that this was false.

So Minh hung on tightly, as if the steel might disappear at any moment and he would tumble to his doom.

Jun was shouting something, but Minh was too focused on remembering to breath. His short choppy breaths filled his ears. He focused only on the thick steel chain, as if it was the power of his stare alone that kept its metal strands from breaking. That thin and tenuous chain that was all that was keeping them from falling to certain doom. He couldn't look away from it, afraid that it would break as soon as he turned his head. And afraid of the view from the other way. The high dizzying drop made his head spin.

His nervousness must have been visible, because he soon felt a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"It'll be fine." Jiang whispered. "The chains are strong. They won't break."

Minh gave him a grateful smile. But despite the reassurance, he continued to watch the chain. He wouldn't want it to break through some negligence of observation on his part.

The chain grew shorter and shorter and Minh's heart pumped faster and faster. They were nearly at the top.

With a great heave, their tank pulled itself out onto solid ground. Minh could finally breath again.

"We're...we're alive!" he said, clutching his heart. He began to feel silly for being afraid at something as simple as climbing a rock cliff. Jiang laughed at the boy's obvious relief.

"I told you that it'd be fine. Come on now, we just have one more cliff to go then we'll be at the Temple."

Minh groaned and tightened his grip on the iron handle in the tank. Another cliff? Sure enough, a new rocky wall was quickly approaching ahead. This one looked even higher than the last one. Clouds hung around its top as if they had been impaled by the pointed peaks.

Once again the grappling hook flew into the air and Minh felt the familiar lurch as they headed up the cliff face. But this time he was expecting it. He was no longer some kind of scrub who was frightened by something as simple as climbing a cliff wall. He was a grizzled veteran. An old hand at cliff climbing. As if to prove to himself he was no longer afraid, he tore his gaze away from the rapidly decreasing chain and looked around with confidence.

The other tanks were crawling up the tank wall steadily, vast black ants on the rocky cliff face. Far to the right, tiny soldiers marched up a thin narrow path. Their bright red uniforms stood out against the snowy backdrop like a long red ribbon. All the might of the Fire Nation on display. Up, up and up they climbed, like a flowing river of red-hot lava pouring down from the mountain-top in an unbroken chain.

Then suddenly it broke.

Tiny red figures tumbled through the air like leafs. Their bodies tossed and turned in the wind like no more than paper dolls.

Minh watched with indifference at first, not realizing what was happening.

Then Takashi leaped up, fire blazing in his hands. The sudden movement caused their tank to sway back and forth.

"We're under attack!" he yelled, pointing at the tumbling soldiers.

Minh’s heart came to a stop. His body gave a mighty push to start it again, causing it to nearly leap out of his chest.

The tank wobbled as Takashi scanned the horizon and Jun screamed at him. "Don't move! We're losing traction!" But Takashi was completely focused on the small growing shapes in the sky that was swooping towards them. At first they looked like some kind of bird, but as they grew closer Minh could make out the shape of boys attached to them. His eyes widened in terror.

"They're coming for us next! Get ready!" Takashi cried. His entire body was tensed.

Minh awkwardly tried to move into battle formation, but it was impossible with the tank climbing straight up. The tank rocked back and forth and gasped under the strain.

"Stop moving!" Jun shouted angrily, but nobody paid him attention anymore.

Jiang was shouting orders that nobody heard. Minh held on desperately to the side of his tank, trying to remember out what he was supposed to be doing. Strange flying contraptions swooped by outside along. An enormous beast flew by. Minh could barely understand what was going on. He heard loud explosions as the enemy’s ammunition made contact with the cliff. Rocks crumbled and fell in deafening roars.

Then before he even knew what had happened, they were falling.

A terrified scream ripped out of Minh’s throat. His body was dropping so fast, so fast that his heart couldn't keep up. His body had already tumbled several inches when he felt his heart drop out from beneath him. He felt disconnected. Around him he saw the steel cage of their tank, and strangely, he saw that his body wasn't touching any of it. He was floating.

Falling.

"NO!" screamed Jun. He desperately scrambled to do something, anything that could prevent them from falling through the air. Somehow his hand made contact with a button. With a woosh, another grappling hook went flying through the air and somehow attached to the cliff top.

The tank arced back on to the wall. Everyone's bodies slammed violently downwards onto the steel tank wall. It hurt, but Minh was just relieved to be touching something solid again. He lay there for what seemed like hours, breathing in and out on the back of the tank.

Yet it was only a few seconds later that they were slowly climbing up the cliff again as if nothing had happened.

The air temple defenders had swooped away to their fortress base and for now their ascent was left unchallenged. But Minh’s heart still felt like it was running a marathon and he scanned the air anxiously for their inevitable return.

Uncertainly, he looked at Jiang. "What… just happened?"

Yet even the more experienced crew leader was at a loss.

Nobody knew what had just happened, so instead of wasting time in useless speculation, they focused on what had to be done. But they could not shake their sense of nerves, and each man glanced uneasily at the surrounding sky, ready to fight at the slightest provocation.

Despite their frayed nerves, the rest of the climb met little resistance and Minh began to think that perhaps it had only been some kind of bizarre hallucination and he had imagined the whole thing.

But as their tank pulled itself over the brink with a jolt and Minh looked at the enormous swarm in the sky, he couldn't fool himself any longer. It was real. He felt sick. The sky above was teeming with flyers, buzzing around the sky like a swarm of buzzard wasps. Their massive stone hive rose behind them. The Northern Air Temple loomed above their tiny tank as great and mighty as the mountains in which it made its home. It was so real.

Minh stared at the enormous pack of enemies and could barely move. It was only until Takashi's grim voice cut into his sodden brain that he took action.

"Open the hatch," Takashi growled, and Minh complied. He shook himself. He had to remember his job. He turned his gaze to the periscope, his hands on the lever that opened the hatch so that the others could fire. He pulled.

Bursts of fire erupted from the summit of their tank like an exploding volcano. The raging balls arced into the sky, but the flyers swooped to avoid them in lazy circles. They were too far up.

Takashi swore under his breath and angrily fired even harder. From the back of the tank Jiang joined in.

Minh kept watch carefully, telling them when a flyer grew close or an enemy was spotted up ahead. It was hard to make out what was happening through the mass of tanks and bodies that covered the snowy plain. But it seemed like they were winning.

Their enemy was nothing but a group of children, Minh realized after some closer inspection. Hardly the terrible monsters he had imagined. They were faltering now, being driven back by their superior numbers.

Minh spotted an enormous red air balloon floating in the air and felt a small burst of confidence. The Fire Nation insignia at the side marked it as their own. They could win this. And even though all the balloon did was release an enormous pile of gunk onto the ground, missing the flyers and instead hitting their own tanks, he could tell that the battle was theirs. Their number was just too small, and the Fire Nation just too great. They could not withstand the greatness and bravery of Minh’s battalion!

The flyers had mostly retreated now and Minh looked around proudly at the massive army that surrounded him. The vast array of tanks surged forward like a tsunami, a giant unstoppable wave of steel and fire. They could win this! The temple grew closer and closer. Soon it would be washed away under the brunt of their assault. They were going to win this! His taste of terror in his mouth was quickly turning into the sweet taste of victory.

Minh grinned as the enemies scattered and they drew closer to the temple. The path was finally clear. He laughed triumphantly and shouted. Matching smiles grew on the other's faces and for a moment everything seemed to pause in a moment of happiness. Victory at last!

Then everything exploded.

For a moment there was pure silence as everything seemed to freeze in place. Minh could see his friends smiling faces as they looked outside in relief. The tanks beside him moved ahead at a turtle-ducks pace.

In the utter silence, he could make out the faint scent of rotten eggs.

Then in an instant the quiet was obliterated. The loudest sound Minh had heard in his life boomed through the air, the sound ringing and echoing in his ears so he couldn't hear anything else. Everything shook.

Then came the blast and Minh was flying, falling, and turning at the same time. His throat was raw and sore from screaming, but he couldn't even hear himself. The heat tore into his face. Everything was torn apart.

Red-hot flames engulfed their tank and it crumpled like paper. Dancing flames consumed Minh’s vision and he felt weak. He fell to the ground. He couldn't see anything but flames. Flames, leaping and burning, tearing everything apart.

The flames grew and grew, until finally everything turned black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> RIIIP :(
> 
> Press F to pay respects


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